I have some massive news concerning A New Leaf. No I haven't forgotten about it. I've been continuously trying to work on the latest chapter, but long story short, life and writer's block got in the way.

But then something pretty big is in the cards for A New Leaf as of now. Out of respect for my readers, I thought I would give you guys the choice and see what the overall response was. I sat down one night, intent on hammering out a new outline that could help me sort the chaotic events that will be happening in coming chapters. One thing led to another and soon I was staring at a brand new version of chapter one. In and of itself, this new chapter doesn't have any massive changes; it's merely more fulfilling imo. There are little things that I added that will come into play later, but nothing particularly groundbreaking. (Not unless you include a little fight scene first chapter)

However, this prompted me to do an overhaul of some of the later chapters so that they would fit the style. There are going to be some scenes that will later be important to the plot added in these later chapters. Writing A New Leaf has been a process of continuous change. I've had ideas that I've scrapped entirely or replaced and others that just now are coming to me. I've written tens of thousands of words only to completely restart on a chapter because I lose interest or dislike a concept.

So the main thing I'm asking you guys is this. The more comprehensive plot will inevitably be the one I go with, but I'm considering keeping this one up, at least until the editing has caught up to chapter 14 or maybe even higher. In other words, I might end up using this story as a canvas. Where you'll see some ideas and get a lot closer faster to solving some of the principle mysteries that drive this story, but it won't be the actual 'finished' product. Quality wise and if you want to really understand the storyline I create, the 3.0 version is better. (and I consider the one up on the site 2.0 because when I first started writing this story, it was one solid wall of words and not split into neat little chapters)

This version will probably get abandoned eventually, but a massive part of me doesn't like having mostly finished chapter 14 only for it to just sit on my computer until I get around to editing it. And part of me wants to keep the original ANL around simply so that I can look back at the original version and remember how far it's come. That and being that I read almost more than I write fanfiction, I know how it is as a fan. Not being able to find a story you really love or having the writer change core aspects of it right out from underneath you.

Regardless this story isn't going to be deleted. The choice here is between posting a completely new story and labeling this one as inactive, posting a completely new story and also continuing to update this as a place to almost work ahead of myself, and doing a revision where the old versions of the chapter will disappear from the site.

TL:DR dumb author's note? Just read the last paragraph.

Depending on the response, I may be posting chapter 14 some time this week.

Give me your thoughts on the issue. Reviews work just as well as pms, although in this case I'd prefer pms over reviews. Like all authors, I'm a review monger but I also like to earn that lovely little number of reviews. Getting a ton of reviews on a chapter that has no actual content seems wrong.

However, I will give you a little sample. No need to review, just enjoy. Here's a little chunk of the new version of chapter one:

A train shrieked to a stop nearby her, steam billowing into the air. The doors slid open and a few restless souls disembarked, exiting the train station quickly without even sparing Tifa a glance. Once their footsteps faded into the sounds of the city, there was no one, not even any security guards. The train huffed a few times before starting forward in a familiar cadence that slowly grew more and more rapid as it disappeared down the tracks, leaving Tifa true and well alone.

Maybe it was just her still jittery nerves and restless mind, but Tifa couldn't shake the feeling of eyes on her. She could feel someone watching her but she had no idea from what direction or who. Aside from some garbage dancing in a light wind and the flicker of a streetlight above, there was nothing moving but Tifa herself. A bang from one of the alleyways had her jumping in her skin, ready to fight, only for her to see a stray dog racing away like the devil was after it.

She almost turned away and ignored it. She would have if she hadn't seen the smears. A bloody handprint on the corner of the wall headed into the alleyway. Another smear on the dumpster the dog had ran away from. And sticking out from the other side was what looked like a single, booted foot, lying at a rather awkward angle. Tifa inwardly grimaced. She'd seen bodies before. Even discounting Nibelhiem she'd seen plenty of corpses. The dead weren't exactly an uncommon site in a city where people starved to death on a regular basis. Where all kinds of treatable diseases ran rampant and slaughtered countless simply because treatment costs too much. And that didn't even take the crime rate into account.

She might have just walked away, preferring not to see some poor man or woman bloody and raw and lifeless. She had enough phantoms for this lifetime. Yet leaving someone injured, barely alive, in a dirty alleyway was not just immoral. It was flat out wrong. So when the boot drew completely out of sight, tucking behind the other side of the dumpster, the matter was decided for her.

"Hello? Is someone there?" She called out as she started forward, tense and ready for a fight. Caution wasn't something she was going to abandon just because this person was hurt. In fact, you should almost be more cautious of injured people. Sometimes when someone is hurt, instinct takes over and they'll defend themselves viciously from friend and foe alike. Like a cornered, wounded animal, they would lash out indiscriminately. What's more, chances are if someone's injured and hiding, they probably aren't someone particularly savory. Someone so suspicious of strangers likely has a reason to be.

"Are you alright? I'm coming around." She called softly, hoping she wasn't walking into a knife. The possibility was very real.

As Tifa slowly rounded the dumpster, she was blindsided. Her injured friend had been spurred into motion. She just barely got a glimpse of flashing blue eyes before he rammed into her, slamming her against the far wall and knocking the wind out of her for the second time that night (morning?).

But instead of further assaulting her, the man took off, flecks of blood bespeckling Tifa's arm with his sudden departure.

Possibly unfinished but just a little snippet involving a certain duo from A New Leaf.

This chapter will be taken down soon, so enjoy it while it's around. I might end up waiting quite a while before posting the actual full product.